To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress with the establishment of an international criminal court.[79983]

Eighty one States, including the UK, have signed the Statute of the International Criminal Court and two have ratified it. The first meeting of the Preparatory Commission for the Court took place in February; the next will begin on 26 July. The Government continue to lobby for international support for the Court, and are playing a full part in the work of the Preparatory Commission.